After the Thunder defeated the Pelicans in the West, the Heat made a franchise playoff record 23 3-pointers against the East's top seed.
The Miami Heat made a series of 3-point shots against the top-seeded Boston Celtics in the NBA Eastern Conference playoff showdown, achieving a 111-101 come-from-behind victory that was on par with the series.
Eighth-seeded Miami, playing without injured Jimmy Butler and returning to Florida for Game 3 on Saturday, had a strong showing on Wednesday to tie the best-of-seven series at 1-1.
Tyler Herro led Miami with 24 points as part of a balanced attack with all five Heat starters scoring in double figures.
But the key to Miami's victory was accuracy from long range, with the Heat making 23 of 43 3-pointers while Boston made 12 of 32.
Herro sank six threes and Caleb Martin added five for 21 points.
Bam Adebayo also added 21 points, Jaime Jaquez Jr. added 14 points and Nikola Jovic added 11 points.
#HEATWin Finals (Game 2) – Miami 111, Boston 101
🔥 Hero: 24 points, 14 asts, 5 revs, 6 3pm
🔥 Adebayo: 21 points, 10 revs
🔥 Martin: 21 points, 5 3 p.m.
🔥 Jaquez Jr.: 14 points, 3 p.m.
🔥 Jovic: 11 points, 9 reb, 6 ast, 3 stl, 3 pm pic.twitter.com/xXcTmtX8UF— Miami Heat (@MiamiHEAT) April 25, 2024
Meanwhile, Boston was led by Jaylen Brown with 33 points and Jayson Tatum with 28 points in the loss.
The win was all the more surprising given Miami's 20-point drubbing of Boston in Game 1 on Sunday, which Herro said motivated the Heat heading into Game 2. Ta.
“We lost badly in Game 1, but everyone responded tonight. That's all you can ask for from a group of players,” Herro said after the game.
It was another typical show of defiance for Miami, which is looking to emulate last season's playoff run, which reached the NBA Finals after entering the postseason through the play-in tournament.
“I don't want to talk about last year. This is a brand new year,” Herro said.
Meanwhile, Boston star Tatum said he expected a rebound after the Celtics' easy win in Game 1.
“I knew it wasn't going to be easy,” Tatum said.
“There’s a lot of history between these two franchises, especially recently.
“Regardless of seeding and who’s in and who’s out, it’s the playoffs…We’ll have a chance to play again on Saturday, so it should be fun.”
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has complete command of the floor and leads the floor. @okcthunder 2-0 series lead!
Chet Holmgren: 26 PTS (9-13 FGM), 3 3PM, 7 REB
Jaylen Williams: 21 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists
Le Dorte: 15 PTS, 4 3 p.m.Game 3: Saturday, 3:30pm/ET, TNT pic.twitter.com/K5Cah3xmsL
— NBA (@NBA) April 25, 2024
Oklahoma City Thunder 124-9 New Orleans Pelicans
While the Eastern Conference's top-seeded teams had to lick their wounds, Oklahoma City, Boston's Western Conference rival, had no such problems.
The No. 1-ranked Thunder took a commanding 2-0 lead in the first round of their series against the No. 8 seed New Orleans Pelicans with a 124-92 victory.
The Thunder took the lead early in the first quarter and were in complete control from beginning to end, maintaining a double-digit advantage from the second quarter onwards and reaching 34 points at one point late in the fourth quarter.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led Oklahoma City in scoring, scoring 33 points on 13-of-19 shooting from the field.
Chet Holmgren had 26 points, Jaylen Williams had 21 points and Luguentz Dort added 15 points, including four 3-pointers.
The result was a stark contrast to Game 1, which was decided Sunday before Oklahoma City won 94-92.
“With seven games in a row, we just have to take it one day at a time and try to get better every day,” Gilgeous-Alexander said after the game.
“And I think that's what we did tonight. We definitely performed better than Game 1 and that's our goal. So we'll take it.”
The series moves on to Game 3 in New Orleans on Saturday.